1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to file downloading and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for optimizing download operations.
2. Description of the Related Art
Users download various resources from the Internet in the form of files, such as software applications, application updates, multimedia content, documents and the like. HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is the underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web. HTTP defines how files are formatted and transmitted, and what actions servers and browsers should take in response to various commands. For example, when a user enters a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) in a browser, this sends an HTTP command to a web server directing the server to fetch and transmit the requested resource. While downloading the resource from the Internet, the user faces various challenges, such as packet losses, long waiting time, and the like.
Currently, techniques exist that utilize a download accelerator whose main aim is to attain the maximum download speed by spawning multiple download threads irrespective of environmental conditions on a user's computer. The conventional techniques may accelerate the download, but are unable to optimize downloading under all types of environmental conditions, be it low bandwidth, memory constraints, a faulty network, and the like.
Therefore, there is a need for a method and apparatus for optimizing download operations.